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The MINI John Cooper Works GP Concept: Racing without compromise. MINI presents design study at the IAA Cars 2017.

Wed Sep 06 00:01:00 CEST 2017 Press Release

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Munich. The BMW Group has chosen the IAA Cars 2017 show in Frankfurt a. M. to present the modern racing essence of a MINI – in the shape of the MINI John Cooper Works GP Concept. Inspired by the carmaker’s legendary triumphs in the Monte Carlo Rally exactly 50 years ago, this design study embodies undiluted dynamic flair and the ultimate in driving fun – on both the race track and the road.

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Munich. The BMW Group has chosen the IAA Cars 2017
show in Frankfurt a. M. to present the modern racing essence of a MINI
– in the shape of the MINI John Cooper Works GP Concept. Inspired by
the carmaker’s legendary triumphs in the Monte Carlo Rally exactly 50
years ago, this design study embodies undiluted dynamic flair and the
ultimate in driving fun – on both the race track and the road. The
concept car picks up the baton from the 2012 MINI John Cooper Works GP
and 2006 MINI Cooper S with John Cooper Works GP Kit. Produced in
strictly limited numbers (2,000 examples each), these two models
explored the outer limits of their performance capability at the time.

“The MINI John Cooper Works GP Concept is all about the unfettered
feeling of driving and levels of performance found in motor sport
competition,” says Peter Schwarzenbauer, Member of the Board of
Management of BMW AG, responsible for MINI, Rolls-Royce and BMW
Motorrad. “This is driving fun in its purest form.”

The design – compact proportions and sporting agility.

The design of the MINI John Cooper Works GP Concept majors on purity
and emotional richness. Significantly wider than the current MINI, the
design study exudes dynamism and power. Large front and rear aprons,
side skirts and a prominent roof spoiler create a confident
appearance. The use of lightweight materials such as carbon fibre
optimises the car’s power-to-weight ratio. And evenly balanced weight
distribution is a ticket to MINI’s signature go-kart feeling.

“If you know about MINI, you’ll be aware of the brand’s long and
successful history in motor sport,” says Adrian van Hooydonk, Senior
Vice President BMW Group Design. “The MINI John Cooper Works GP
Concept brings together the full suite of defining MINI design
features and showcases them at their sportiest and most exciting. What
we’re looking at here is maximum performance, maximum MINI.”

The front end.

Large air intakes and precisely moulded air deflectors dominate the
front end, which cuts a low-to-the-road figure. Crisply cut add-on
elements frame the smooth MINI silhouette and highlight the track
focus of the MINI John Cooper Works GP Concept when viewed head-on.
The space between the main body of the front end and the air
deflectors further strengthens the car’s presence. The familiar colour
contrasts of John Cooper Works models come in the form of the Black
Jack Anthracite exterior paint finish – which shimmers between grey
and black – and the accent colour Curbside Red metallic (a matt red
shade). Curbside Red metallic provides a fresh take on the classical
John Cooper Works red and visually accentuates the optimised geometry
of the performance and add-on parts.

At the centre of the front end, iconic MINI design cues such as the
elliptical headlights and hexagonal radiator grille sharpen the car’s
identity and recognisability factor. At the same time, elements such
as the powerdome with prominent air scoop in the bonnet and the
hexagonal honeycomb radiator grille and air intakes in the front apron
heighten the car’s sporting appearance. Further colour accents in
Highspeed Orange enhance the visual impact of the headlights and air intake.

The lower edge of the large front apron reaches down close to the
road, appearing to suck the front end towards the asphalt, while the
car’s wide track and prominently flared wheel arches promise top-level
handling and high cornering speeds. Another technical highlight is the
front apron’s all-carbon-fibre construction, which reduces the car’s
weight. The carbon matting is now directly visible and presented with
a high-gloss paint finish with red hexagon graphic.

The sides.

In time-honoured MINI fashion, the interplay of narrowing windows and
a rising shoulderline creates a wedge shape from the side and gives
the car the appearance of powering forward even before it turns a
wheel. Lower down, voluminous surfaces fuse into a muscular body and
endow the flanks with agility and dynamism. The car number 0059 refers
to the year the classic Mini was born: 1959.

Carbon-fibre side skirts provide the body with its lowest edge.
19-inch Racetrack lightweight wheels in classical multi-spoke design
underline the design study’s performance aspirations. Contrasts in
Curbside Red metallic - together with the Highspeed Orange on the
inside of the rims – and the GP logo bring extra verve to the wheel
design. Elsewhere, Curbside Red metallic and Highspeed Orange bring
neatly judged highlights to the exterior mirror bases and door handles respectively.

The rear end.

The rear of the MINI John Cooper Works GP Concept picks up the
striking use of forms in the front end and flanks. Here again, large
surfaces are bordered by precisely formed air-channelling elements,
and the positioning of the LED rear lights well to the outside of the
rear underscores the car’s dynamic focus. Sophisticated touches, such
as the half-Union Jack on each side, represent a nod to the concept
car’s British origins, while also providing a sporty, technical
flourish. The prominent roof spoiler is a visual statement of intent
and slots cleanly into the geometry of the side elements.

Like the front end and flanks, the lower section of the car has a
very precise and dynamic design. Carbon-fibre air vents and air
deflectors are in optimum positions, and the two rain lights at the
outer edges at the rear improve visibility in wet races. The classical
central twin tailpipes low down at the rear embody the John Cooper
Works DNA to eye-catching effect.

The interior – stripped down and with track-inspired looks.

The interior of the MINI John Cooper Works GP Concept is pared back
to its core elements, its roll cage joined on board by little more
than a pair of low-mounted bucket seats with five-point belts and a
cleanly-designed instrument panel. Gearshift is by paddles on the
steering wheel.

All the elements of the interior are trained squarely on the driver.
The display and control concept with digital instrument cluster and
Head-Up Display places the relevant information for the situation at
hand directly in the driver’s eye-line, allowing absolute focus on the
road to be maintained. Interaction between driver and car is otherwise
digital, notably touch-control adjustment of suspension settings in
MINI’s familiar central instrument. As digitalisation dictates, the
display here is now in large-screen format. It is left to the large
emergency cut-off button and the traditional MINI toggle switches with
start/stop button to provide a bridge between the digital and analogue worlds.

A rear seat bench, headliner and conventional door trim panels are
conspicuous by their absence, sacrificed in the interests of weight
minimisation. Instead, the surfaces between the elements of the roll
cage and the rear compartment are trimmed in lightweight panels with
textured details and a hexagonal pattern. This creates a transition
between the unadorned rear and more design-rich front cabin. The doors
are opened using recessed grips with fabric straps, leaving the driver
and passenger to clamber out through the roll cage in the usual racing
car style.

The interior combines its pared-back sporting forms with eye-catching
elements and bold colour accents. The result is a face-off between the
less familiar aesthetic of a racing-car bodyshell and the exclusivity
of high-quality production-car appointments. Against the backdrop of
the white basic space, black, patinated smooth leather on the head
restraints and bolsters provides a neat contrast with the
back-and-white knitted textile in the central section of the seats. A
new 3D knitting technique gives a classy and modern feel, while red
accents send out a visual statement. The bright, aluminium roll cage
also stands apart clearly from the black 3D-printed parts in the doors
and instrument panel, and a lightly-structured trim element with
hexagonal graphic reinforces the sporty, modern look. Curbside Red
metallic adds a colour accent to selected functional components, while
the Highspeed Orange shade in details like the belt straps,
inscriptions and the stitching of the steering wheel and seats acts as
a second accent colour to complement the red. With 3D printing and 3D
knitting techniques, MINI is bringing technologies to the interior of
the concept car which will enable both tool-free production and simple
personalisation in the future.

MINI + high performance + race-track feeling = John Cooper
Works.

The character of the MINI John Cooper Works GP Concept is defined by
a motor sport heritage which stretches back over more than five
decades. Indeed, the classic Mini was transformed by legendary sports
car designer John Cooper into a byword for driving fun on the road and
an extraordinarily successful competitor in the race and rally scene.
A motor sport career which began exactly 50 years ago reached its
zenith with three overall victories in the Monte Carlo Rally. Today,
the John Cooper Works name is synonymous with products and models
whose quality is rooted in established motor sport know-how and an
association with the British premium small car which dates back all
those years. The result: the motor sport experience comes roaring into
everyday life.